Pinas addressed the changing forms of crime on Monday during the programme To The Point. According to him, the past mainly saw traditional forms of fraud, in which criminals approached their victims in person. Today, fraudsters increasingly use the internet and specially designed websites to take money from citizens. “It is a challenge for the police to trace digital fraudsters,” the police chief said.
Wet BOB must expand investigative capabilities
Pinas hopes that the Wet Bijzondere Opsporingsbevoegdheden will be considered and adopted by De Nationale Assemblée (DNA, Suriname’s parliament) as soon as possible, after which it can be promulgated. “In this day and age, we cannot do without this law,” he stressed.
According to the police chief, the law should give the police more opportunities to effectively combat digital crime and other forms of cross-border crime. These include special investigative methods, including observing persons under statutory conditions and intercepting communications.
Citizens’ privacy remains a point of attention
Pinas acknowledged that the proposed investigative powers have prompted mixed feelings in society. In particular, the possibility of wiretapping telephone conversations raises questions about the protection of citizens’ privacy.
The police chief stressed that, in his view, such measures should not be applied without legal safeguards. He pointed out that a judicial preliminary investigation must first take place and that the judge has a role before telephone conversations are tapped. “We know that this concerns people’s privacy, so ordinary police officers will not be involved in this,” Pinas said.
According to the police chief, special investigative methods must be applied carefully and within the legal framework. He stressed that the police must take citizens’ privacy into account, while at the same time having sufficient resources to tackle modern forms of crime.
